Circadian Rhythm.   Biological Rhythm.    Body Clocks.

We’ve heard the words. We might use them in casual conversation. We might even preach to our clients the importance of them. But if put on the spot, would we be able to accurately and specifically define them? How about effectively adding them into a program or workup for our patients or clients?

All of those words and more stem from the overarching area of Chronobiology.

Would it surprise you to learn that you could supercharge your client’s results just by sprinkling in a bit of timing know-how?

Let’s take a look:

Chronobiology is a multidisciplinary field of study where scientists research the rhythms of living organisms. Oddly, prior to the last few decades, much of the work revolved around plants. Since it branched out to animals, and finally humans, our understanding of the effects of the physical, solar, lunar and environmental cycles has skyrocketed. 

Here’s the rundown.

As humans, we have a circadian master clock which runs on a 24 hour cycle based on light and dark information. This clock resets when sunlight hits the eye. That’s why blue light limitation has become so popular for maintaining our sleep cycles, and thus, our better health. 

So, we have this master clock which is a group of cells called the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) housed in the hypothalamus of the brain. As it goes, when we name something the “master”, it usually follows that there are other pieces of the puzzle which are less masterful. This is no different with our body clocks

These “less-masterful” entities are called peripheral clocks and reside in every tissue in the body. They oversee things like insulin release, fat storage, energy production and body temperature. Many of them both receive as well as send messages back to the SCN. All of them interact with our behaviors and the environment around us such as food intake, physical movement and body temperature. Among other things, they wake us up, send us to sleep, make us grow, tell our bodies to recover, assist movement, and help us digest.

Why do we care?

Okay, we’re talking clocks, right? 

Lots of clocks. 

Imagine an entire shop filled with hundreds of clocks. When they tick along in sync with each other under the direction of the master clock, the shop is filled with a melodious tick-tock song. When one or two get behind, it’s distracting to the ear. Add in a few more and the cacophony will send you running out the door. 

In our bodies this chaos is called circadian desynchrony (CD). Obviously, this is not a desirable state of being in a body that strives for homeostasis, balance and harmony.

Let’s talk about you…

Whether you realize it or not, you probably use chronobiology every day. Think about any client you have. When they first walked through your door, you noticed many things in an instant including their age and what they were wearing.

Their age told you of their journey through the years. (Circannual rhythm.) 

Clothing (and a glance out the window) told you of the season. Both of these fall in the category of chronobiology called infradian rhythms which have a cycle of more than 24 hours (monthly biannually or yearly) 

You invite them to sit down and you discover a bit more. You might ask about their eating habits, energy levels and what kind of work and exercise they do. From those things you know their rhythms of digestion, hormone release, productivity/focus, and energy production.

These are a second aspect of chronobiology called Ultradian cycles or things that happen multiple times in a 24 hour period. 

And lastly you might ask about their sleep and wake cycles. These bring us back to that 24 hour circadian rhythm and the all-important master clock.

Here’s what you might be missing:

Still thinking of that client…

What might not be outwardly apparent is that most people on the planet since the invention of the lightbulb are desynchronized with their master clock due to artificial light. Add to that a few irregular meal times, some weird sleep patterns and even an air conditioner over their desk at work and their internal clock shop sounds like a 5th grade orchestra warming up. Not only does the noise make you want to run for the hills, desynchronization has been correlated to everything from metabolic disease to neurological disorders to cancer. 

What can you do about it?

Meet the givers of time: …light…food…exercise

Okay, we’ve established that timing is everything. We have the master clock that sets the rhythm based on light. Then we have our peripheral clocks that listen to the master clock, but they also take cues from our behavior; how we eat and exercise. 

Back to our clock shop.

The tissues involved in digestion (stomach, endocrine, gut, etc.) have an optimal operating rhythm that is in sync with the master clock. When an individual eats at those specific times, the digestive system is ready to work and everything is primed for performance. Digestion is super efficient, delivery of nutrients to tissues is optimal, energy production is peak.

The result is a bevy of clocks in sync which is a beautiful thing!

But say, we skip meals and have midnight snacks. Skipping meals tells the body a story of scarcity (not a great thing unless you want to pack on the pounds). Then, that doughnut at midnight sets off a series of events. Not only is the digestive system not primed for food, but the alarms go off and the tissues report back to the master clock that it’s daytime. The master clock, getting its information from the eye says, “Nope.”. Suddenly our clocks are out of sync. 

Same goes with exercise.

Studies show that if you exercise out of sync with your natural rhythm, it actually has adverse effects like increased insulin resistance, decreased focus and coordination leading to higher possibilities of injury and even delayed melatonin release.

But how do you line up those clocks?

Here’s where true personalization comes in:

As a health professional, you already recognize that every client is an individual with different histories, present habits and future goals. What the study of chronobiology adds is that each person is endowed with a unique set of rhythms.  Their clocks tick in a completely personal way. Therefore, synchrony creates a distinctive song in each body. 

What does this mean?

Every person has certain times in the day where they perform mental tasks better or are more ready to move or digest. Add to that the times of day when they most need to socialize or be in nature or rest and the possibilities for pinpointing the precise intervention for that specific person unfold. When you understand the chronobiology of a client, you get a glimpse into the timing of their hormone release. Then, you can synchronize specific activities with the correct hormone release for that task and BAM! Success is simple!

Let’s get specific:

Say your client’s cortisol peaks super fast in the morning and their body temp is up super quick after rising. Essentially, they are ready for action. If you recommend exercise, hard mental tasks and complex productivity steps early in the day, they will ride the wave of their hormones, thus working with their natural rhythms.

Another client’s melatonin sticks around a bit longer in the morning, pushing that cortisol peak later in the day. These things, along with a natural drop in insulin sensitivity and greater cardiovascular efficiency in the afternoon, prime them for a trip to the gym later in the day.

And this is just the beginning. There are as many configurations as there are hormones in the body and people who walk in the door of your practice. 

But the same caveat applies: 

When your program harnesses the power of clocks ticking in sync, your clients feel strong, strive toward their goals with ease, enjoy life more and stick to it. They excel…and all things improve.

A final note:

Our desire is to create the perfect plan for each client to achieve their desired results in the shortest amount of time possible with the least effort expended. That is true efficiency. Adding the chronobiological component into our already effective programs takes our client/practitioner success to the next level. And who doesn’t want to do that?

To learn how to apply precision methods and technology solutions to your service offering and effectively add chronobiology and more to your practice, check out our Level 1 Course for Health Professionals.

References

Circadian disruption and human health: A bidirectional relationship – PMC (nih.gov) 

Abbott SM, Malkani RG, Zee PC. Circadian disruption and human health: A bidirectional relationship. Eur J Neurosci. 2020;51(1):567-583. doi:10.1111/ejn.14298

Article with tons of notations on studies of circadian desynchrony 

The suprachiasmatic nucleus controls the circadian rhythm of heart rate via the sympathetic nervous system – PubMed (nih.gov)

Warren WS, Champney TH, Cassone VM. The suprachiasmatic nucleus controls the circadian rhythm of heart rate via the sympathetic nervous system. Physiol Behav. 1994 Jun;55(6):1091-9. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(94)90392-1. PMID: 8047576.

https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.1006749107

Christian Cajochen, Jakob Weber, Alejandro F. Estrada,Kumpei Kobayashi,Virginie Gabel,

Circadian and homeostatic sleep-wake regulation of secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA): Effects of environmental light and recovery sleep, Brain, Behavior, & Immunity – Health, 19, (100394), (2022).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbih.2021.100394

Impact of the human circadian system, exercise, and their interaction on cardiovascular function

Circadian rhythm disruption and mental health – PMC (nih.gov)

Walker WH 2nd, Walton JC, DeVries AC, Nelson RJ. Circadian rhythm disruption and mental health. Transl Psychiatry. 2020;10(1):28. Published 2020 Jan 23. doi:10.1038/s41398-020-0694-0

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306452210011103?via%3Dihub

1. Shuboni, L. Yan,

Nighttime dim light exposure alters the responses of the circadian system,

Neuroscience,Volume 170, Issue 4,2010, Pages 1172-1178,  ISSN 0306-4522,

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroscience.2010.08.009.

https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article-abstract/106/3/e1373/5922806?redirectedFrom=fulltext&login=false

Leilah K Grant, Charles A Czeisler, Steven W Lockley, Shadab A Rahman, Time-of-day and Meal Size Effects on Clinical Lipid Markers, The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Volume 106, Issue 3, March 2021, Pages e1373–e1379, 

Time-of-day and Meal Size Effects on Clinical Lipid Markers 

https://diabetesjournals.org/care/article/40/11/1573/36945/Influences-of-Breakfast-on-Clock-Gene-Expression

Daniela Jakubowicz, Julio Wainstein, Zohar Landau, Itamar Raz, Bo Ahren, Nava Chapnik, Tali Ganz, Miriam Menaged, Maayan Barnea, Yosefa Bar-Dayan, Oren Froy; Influences of Breakfast on Clock Gene Expression and Postprandial Glycemia in Healthy Individuals and Individuals With Diabetes: A Randomized Clinical Trial. Diabetes Care 1 November 2017; 40 (11): 1573–1579.

https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/ajpregu.00355.2002

Exercise elicits phase shifts and acute alterations of melatonin that vary with circadian phase

Orfeu M. Buxton, Calvin W. Lee, Mireille L’Hermite-Balériaux, Fred W. Turek, and Eve Van Cauter

American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology 2003 284:3, R714-R724   

https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/20/7/1597/htm

Maury, E. Off the Clock: From Circadian Disruption to Metabolic Disease. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20, 1597. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20071597

 Circadian rhythms and athletic performance : Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise (lww.com)

WINGET, CHARLES M.; DEROSHIA, CHARLES W.; HOLLEY, DANIEL C. Circadian rhythms and athletic performance, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise: October 1985 – Volume 17 – Issue 5 – p 498-516

RELATIONSHIP OF ENDOGENOUS CIRCADIAN MELATONIN AND TEMPERATURE RHYTHMS TO SELF-REPORTED PREFERENCE FOR MORNING OR EVENING ACTIVITY IN YOUNG AND OLDER PEOPLE – PMC (nih.gov)

Duffy JF, Dijk DJ, Hall EF, Czeisler CA. Relationship of endogenous circadian melatonin and temperature rhythms to self-reported preference for morning or evening activity in young and older people. J Investig Med. 1999;47(3):141-150.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fendo.2018.00219/full

Lin Hui-Hsien, Farkas Michelle E.Altered Circadian Rhythms and Breast Cancer: From the Human to the Molecular Level  

Frontiers in Endocrinology VOLUME=9   2018  10.3389/fendo.2018.00219   ISSN=1664-2392 

Look at next week’s schedule. What if you could breeze through all those appointments, fit in a few urgent cases and take Friday off?

Are you done laughing?

Oh, I didn’t mention the best part. Your clients are smashing their goals like superheroes on crime.  

Here’s how you can live that scenario not just next week, but every week.

Know your client’s priorities.

Did you roll your eyes?

Perfect. 

Now, I invite you to hear me out. 

The goals and reasons your clients put on their intake form have nothing to do with their true priorities. Understanding these priorities does not involve six deep conversations, an intricate values test and a mind map. 

It involves basic biology.

How they were made, what drives them on a chemical level and how their DNA is expressing at this moment in time will intersect at the precise point where action equals results. 

The Power of Precision

If we’re really going to clear your schedule next week, we need to get specific.

You know the client that comes in with the weight loss goal, has tried everything and sits on the precipice of several life-threatening diseases, so this time they’ve got to make it happen? Our professional eye looks at the client, draws a line to the future goal and tackles the obvious things first. This client’s priorities look like numbers; both on the scale and in their bloodwork. 

But what if this client’s biological priority is family? 

Instead of the obvious discussion about what’s on their plate and how often they hit the gym, what if our first question is ‘How’s the family?’

We’re not just making conversation here. 

This person’s biological necessity is to make sure that everyone that they call family; from those in their household, to those in their workplace and community, stays safe. If there is turmoil around them, they will not allocate resources for themselves. 

We might spend hours across weeks dialing in their diet, exercise and even mindset with only a few small changes in their numbers. 

These are the bodies that will carry extra weight for survival. So in times of stress, the numbers on the scale will rise. 

Why? 

Because biologically they are predisposed to give, nurture and care for others. And to do all of that, you have to have extra. This is a beautiful biological response that harkens back to times of hardship and famine. So, in trying to bring these numbers on the scale down by increasing the exercise (stress) and decreasing the food (also stress), we are working against nature itself. 

You might have noticed by now that the biggest player here is stress. 

Remember that point of intersection we talked about before? 

When we can remove stressors from this point, the client’s biological priority, then that frees up resources to tackle the other pillars of health. 

Contained in our simple question, ‘How’s the family’, is the magical key to unlocking stellar results. 

Look at it from your client’s perspective. They stepped off the scale that morning and stepped into your office braced for the standard protocol: diet and exercise delivered through your brand of expertise. 

What happens in their body and mind when you ask that simple question? “How’s the family?”

Barriers drop. Stress melts. Their mind turns full-force toward the real cause of their distress. Maybe it’s a coworker or a child, a neighbor or a dear friend, or even that they don’t feel they have someone to call family. 

Back to you.

You don’t have to be qualified to assess their psychological status to have a simple conversation. You don’t have to have the answer to why their son is failing math or why their neighbor just built an enormous wall between their backyards or whether they should quit their job. You just have to know that their biology is craving stability and safety in this realm. And it is not getting what it craves.

For that session, your protocol might look like directing them to identify a single person in their world that they can completely relax around. Someone that doesn’t offload their problems. Someone that doesn’t expect anything from your client except their company.

What you don’t do is more important than what you do.

Now. this probably isn’t something you want to put on the header of your website: “I’m not going to do anything, and you’ll want to come back for more!”

But in reality, you didn’t give them a prescription that heaped on the stress. You didn’t tackle the priorities they stated on their intake form. You probably didn’t do anything you learned in your certification or degree.

Instead, you gave them the precise protocol their biology craved.  

You are a magician.

So, there are priorities and there are biological priorities. When we work in alignment with the way that each person is created and how they are presenting in this moment, we facilitate the most significant outcomes possible.

Back to you and your schedule.

When you dive beneath the surface-level desires scribbled on intake forms to tap into the rich vein of your client’s true motivations and needs, you enter the realm of absolute efficiency. 

Then you sail through your weeks, turning challenges into triumphs (and even reclaiming your Fridays!). It sounds like a dream but Precision Health is here now. It is grounded in the undeniable science of individuality where action is informed by the most authentic version of each person. It’s where the efficiency of our strategies multiplies, not by doing more, but by doing right.

If you want to get more precise with your clients and spend less time for better results…and maybe get your Friday’s back, too, check out our Level 1 Course for health professionals.